Syracuse firefighters honored for valor

Syracuse, NY -- Sometimes, all the training in the world won’t prepare a firefighter to do what it takes to save a life.

Syracuse Fire Department Lt. David Munski and Firefighter Michael Valenti learned that lesson last year. Thursday night, they were honored for their quick thinking with a team citation during the department’s promotion and award ceremony.

On May 10, 2010, they were called to an apartment fire. By the time they arrived, the bulk of the fire had been extinguished.

They were standing on the third-floor balcony. An apartment resident was sitting on the balcony between them, receiving oxygen while waiting for an ambulance.

“The next thing we know, he got up and leapt,” said Munski after the awards ceremony in which he was promoted to captain.

The man jumped over the railing and was in midair, Munski and Valenti said. “I grabbed his right arm and he (Valenti) grabbed his left arm,” Munski said.

“It was just instinct,” Valenti said.

The man was struggling with the firefighters, who were trying to keep their balance. Other firefighters at the scene came to their aid, and the man was pulled back onto the balcony and taken for medical treatment.

“I’ve had 28 years here and I’ve never heard of such a thing,” said Stephen Cavuto, deputy fire chief and master of ceremonies for the awards, which were presented at Pensabene’s Restaurant on State Fair Boulevard. “It shows how unpredictable the day in the life of a firefighter is. It’s not just going into a fire.”